Former IWGP Heavyweight champion Kenny Omega has it specifically written into his AEW contract that he can perform for New Japan Pro Wrestling. Despite this, he was not on the G1 Supercard from Madison Square Garden last weekend. He spoke to John Pollock from Post Wrestling recently to promote his “Omega Man” documentary and explained why he didn’t wrestle on the G1 Supercard.



“I would very much love to be a part of everything, not only [the G1 Climax in Dallas, Texas], but the Madison Square Garden show, the G1, all of those things, but then I’m burning the candle at both ends, and on top of that, sometimes, there may be a conflict of interest,” Omega said.

“I mean, I could go there, but there are all these storylines in place and I think New Japan, with how they book so long-term, they have a direction and a plan and knowing that we have our hands completely full, overly full, with what we have to do – it’s a huge undertaking – it’s probably best that we focus on our own things for now and just know that on both sides, the door is mutually open,” he continued.

Omega wants to continue wrestling in Japan even if working with NJPW isn’t in the cards for now.

“I mean, I have a sentimental attachment to the country, and the people, of course, and to the see the amount of joy as something as simple as one of my matches can bring to a person in that country,” Omega said. “That’s really important to me and even though I may not be able to accomplish many more accolades, and that I’ve checked off almost every box that there is to check in Japan, that doesn’t mean I want to pack up and move on from Japan.”

Still, however, Omega knows his next step in wrestling is outside Japan.

“I’d love to keep coming back till I take my last bump, to Japan. But there are things that I feel like I can still do and that I even have a responsibility to do in professional wrestling, and that requires me to take the next step, which is AEW and pursue that to its full extent.”